Columnists

Was it worth it?

Sallie Satterthwaite's picture

In the course of less than a month, Fayette County lost two of its most revered citizens, Drs. Ferrol and Helen Sams.

In sheer gentility, they epitomized devotion to community and to family – which for the most part are the same thing.

I forget, sometimes, how the years slip away, and when a friend spoke to me the other day, I was taken off-guard. Our county is so populous now that it’s hard to imagine that when the Samses opened their Fayetteville office, they were the only full-time physicians here. Read More»

Intellectuals and race: Part II

Thomas Sowell's picture

Once we recognize that large differences in achievement among races, nations and civilizations have been the rule, not the exception, throughout recorded history, there is at least some hope of rational thought — and perhaps even some constructive efforts to help everyone advance.

Even such a British patriot as Winston Churchill said, “We owe London to Rome” — an acknowledgement that Roman conquerors created Britain’s most famous city, at a time when the ancient Britons were incapable of doing so themselves. Read More»

Herschel Walker

Loran Smith's picture

WESTLAKE, Tex. — The Herschel Walker you know is likely the one who won the Heisman Trophy, played 15 years of professional football, and pursued a number of competitions — from bobsledding to mixed martial arts. There’s the Herschel who collects antique automobiles, the Herschel who is trying to improve his golf game. Read More»

Game changer in Latin America

Dick Morris's picture

The twin developments of the death of Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez and the election of Jorge Mario Bergoglio may offer a turning point for Latin America.

Chavez had established an eight-country empire of minions willing to do his bidding including Argentina, Bolivia, Uruguay, Venezuela, Ecuador, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Cuba. In addition, the Dominican Republic and Brazil are under his influence. Read More»

Detroit’s decline and one-party rule

Cal Thomas's picture

Since the Motown sound went silent — except on oldies stations — and General Motors and Chrysler (but not Ford) required life support from Washington, there has been little to recommend Detroit, Mich., to visitors, much less its residents.

The recent conviction of Kwame Kilpatrick, the former mayor of Detroit, on multiple charges, including racketeering, fraud and extortion, adds another insult to the city’s injury, increasing its misery. Read More»

Learning to live in a virtual world

Bonnie Willis's picture

I think the first time I consciously noticed the power of “living in a virtual world” was about ten years ago when a girl I was mentoring seemed to be far more conversational when we would “talk” via email than when we talked on the phone or in-person.

I could barely get her to speak two sentences to me in the real world, but when we would “talk” online, she could go on for pages.

When I questioned her as to how she seemed to open up via email, but barely spoke in person, she smiled and shrugged. Read More»

The sound of inevitability

Cal Thomas's picture

Given his track record on marital fidelity, former President Bill Clinton is not the person I would consult about “committed, loving relationships.” Clinton used those words in a Washington Post op-ed last week, urging the Supreme Court to overturn the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which defines marriage as the legal union of one man and one woman, which he signed into law. Read More»

Teacher education to blame for failing schools

Walter Williams's picture

American education is in a sorry state of affairs, and there’s enough blame for all participants to have their fair share.

They include students who are hostile and alien to the education process, uninterested parents, teachers and administrators who either are incompetent or have been beaten down by the system, and politicians who’ve become handmaidens for teachers unions. Read More»

What really matters: Measuring human freedom

Dr. Alejandro A. Chafuen's picture

[Editor’s note: A version of this article first appeared at Forbes.com.]

“If it matters, measure it” is the motto of the Fraser Institute, the leading Canadian think tank, where I have been a trustee since 1991. More than a motto, the focus on measurement permeates and guides all the work of the institute. As few things matter more than freedom, it is only fitting that Fraser has embarked in its most ambitious methodological effort: measuring human freedom. Read More»

Intellectuals and race, Part 1

Thomas Sowell's picture

There are so many fallacies about race that it would be hard to say which is the most ridiculous. However, one fallacy behind many other fallacies is the notion that there is something unusual about different races being unequally represented in various institutions, careers or at different income or achievement levels.

A hundred years ago, the fact that people from different racial backgrounds had very different rates of success in education, in the economy and in other endeavors, was taken as proof that some races were genetically superior to others. Read More»